upholding British statute law, in opposition to this Yankee's cant: after I had voluntarily suffered imprisonment for nearly eight months, in order to go home in triumph to my friends as a thrice-tried British subject, with a THIRD honourable acquittal from false charges of sedition: let any one keep all this in view, and it is not a tenth of what I could present; let any one keep all this in view, and imagine himself brought into the fresh air, after six weeks close confinement, during the dog-days of Upper Canada, with an imagination more lively by weakness, and the powers of reasoning totally unmanageable ;-let any one suppose himself brought forth and insulted with the mockery of justice and all that was decent, by such a man as I have described, asking me if I was ready for trial, and he will be cruel, indeed, who would not grant indulgence to the utterance of contempt. It was in this feeling, in this maze of disgust that I lost myself. -Thank God, I am now in the calm enjoyment of reason; and setting aside all feeling-all passion, I would, in sincerity, put this question to every one who has an interest in, or any regard for, our national honour and prosperity, if Chief Justice Powell is a man calculated to advance either the one or the other, if his conduct has not added to the many reasonable demands for inquiry into the state of Upper Canada?

Should my extraordinary case astound too much, I have a simpler one. Chief Justice Powell enjoyed, among his other Government salaries, £100 a year for being a member of the land-board. My

brother went out from Scotland expressly for the purpose of settling in Upper Canada, had a character free even of suspicion, presented to the landboard a regular petition for a grant of wild land of the Crown, took the oath of allegiance, and paid fees; got an insulting answer in return for his petition, his oath, and his fees; all of which was well known to Chief Justice Powell; yet this false, flattering sycophant,-this man, who puts his name to the Address cheering up Governor Gore after he had shut out Americans, with cant about the "truly British colony," and the "welfare of his Majesty's subjects," lets my brother, an unoffending, supplicating British subject, remain eleven months in Upper Canada unattended to, at last to go off to try his fortune in another " colony,"-Demerara.

truly British

Lastly; and, to have done with Chief Justice Powell; his character cannot be unknown to Earl Bathurst at least, I can say this for a truth, that Major Loring, spoken of p. 464, gave me to understand in 1818 that he was going to England for the express purpose of informing Lord Bathurst as to his baseness; and my most thorough conviction leads me to confirm the opinion of the Niagara magistrate; that "he is at the bottom of all the mischief of the province:" shutting out Americans, or shutting out British subjects, just as it suits the man of the world.

To close this subject of shutting out Americans, I shall now make a few remarks on my second Address to the Resident Landholders of

Upper Canada, which assisted to open the door for free ingress according to law. That Address was by far the boldest thing published by me in Canada; but it was imperiously called for in all its parts; particularly where it decides as to the principle and law of allegiance. It is perfectly clear, that though orders had been sent from home to exclude Americans from freely settling in Upper Canada, that the provincial legislators, not excepting my faithful instigator Councillor Dickson,

were one and all of them to blame as to the counteraction of the British statutes 13th Geo. 2d. and 30th Geo. 3d. All of them joined in giving the £3,000 to Governor Gore within six months after he had issued his CIRCULAR of 14th October, 1815; and it was even said that the Resolutions which caused Parliament to be hastily dismissed would not have been brought forward had Governor Gore continued sufficiently loving to certain of his favourites. Caprice, it was said, assisted to frame the Resolutions, which should have been framed and passed one year sooner; and certainly, prior to bestowing any gift on the Governor. Councillor Dickson himself did not run restive from any zeal to support statute law against the encroachment of executive power, or any clear perceptions of law. He got sulky only after he began to feel consequences; and had no right whatever to abuse Governor Gore for putting restraints on the free ingress of American Settlers. He had, for a year at least, countenanced the unwarranted presumption of executive power, in is

suing the first restraining CIRCULAR; and, under circumstances, Governor Gore did perfectly right to turn him out of the commission. Governor Gore had an undoubted right, at any time, with reason or none, to make or unmake him a magistrate, and his acquiescence in the general measure of restraint, justified Governor Gore in the particular act of depriving him of power which he used to contravene the spirit of that measure. Mr. Councillor Dickson did not seem to care one farthing though Americans were shut out, in general: did not seem to care one farthing for the law, as it was essential to public interests, provided he could have a special leave to benefit himself and settle Dumfries with Americans. The Councillor would say this to his Excellency, "Take you, Governor Gore, £3,000 of the people's money for the purchase of silver spoons*, and indulge yourself in a thorough search of every man and woman also, that comes to settle in Upper Canada: annoy the men and kiss the women, by all means, coming in to settle other people's land; but throw not the smallest obstacle in the way of male or female proceeding to Dumfries. Let me remain on the commission to swear in my settlers without annoyance, and in that case, do whatever you please. I care only for myself."

*The vote of Parliament to bestow on Governor Gore £3,000, by address, for the purchase of plate, was humorously called by the people, "The Spoon Bill." They saw through the thing perfectly; but thought it best to console themselves with a laugh.

As to me, I had not been in the province many days before I saw into the absurdity and impolicy of making harsh and odious distinctions between British and American settlers; but I knew little of the laws on the subject till a week or two before I took up my pen to support the principles on which they had been framed. As to self-interest in the affair, that did not move me in the least degree. I had some landed property in Upper Canada, which had become unsaleable in consequence of the shutting out of Americans, and in drawing out a petition to the Provincial Parliament, and otherwise, I took advantage of this to ground upon it my plea of complaint; but the consideration of loss upon that property, in consequence of the counteraction of law, did not actuate me in the slightest degree when I wrote my second Address to the Resident Landowners of Upper Canada. If I had regard to any private interest in this way, that of Mr. William Dickson was nearest my heart, for I did think his situation a very cruel one. In some respects, the shutting out of Americans promised rather to be favourable to my own private views. Looking to the business of land-agency which I proposed to establish, it gave hope that the home ministry might be more disposed to countenance emigrants to Canada, and patronise my efforts, when once convinced of their error, in order to make amends. for the mischief done to that country by stopping the accustomed stream of settlement. My zeal proceeded from feelings infinitely above selfish